How to exfoliate extremely sensitive skin

[lupinlass]

I went to Iceland over Christmas and the extreme cold weather, plus breathing in and out into a snood, caused my skin barrier to go haywire!! A couple of days after my return my face was burning, itching, painful, red, tight etc etc! I had to resort to neurofen occasionally.
In the last couple of weeks it has got better. I've been slapping on emollients, LRP cicaplast balm, E45 and blistex lip cream.

However, despite this my skin is still dry and rough. I want to exfoliate to get rid of the flakiness but darent because it's so sore and sensitive.

Is there anything I can use to kind of 'dissolve' the flakes!?! Something that won't cause more rashes.... Or does my skin need more time do you think?

Sorry this sounds like an nightmare! I'd maybe try and mix a little bit of physical exfoliant in with a cleansing balm so it would
Act as a kind of buffer making it less harsh? If that seems too much you could even just try manual exfoliation with a warm flannel for an even gentler approach. I would definitely steer clear of chemical exfoliants as they are harder to 'dilute'

good Luck!

I wouldn't exfoliate yet. Try using Rosehip oil at night. It should help to calm and soothe your skin. If that doesn't work you may need to go the antihistamine and hydrocortisone route.

I really wouldn’t. I get soreness and flakiness from roseacea sometimes and it just irritates and aggravated it, it ends up redder. I would go simpler with more moisturising products @JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn recommendation is a good one IMO.

Yes I agree that exfoliating now would be a mistake. Just keep on with the healing and hydrating products for now.

I’d maybe just try a damp baby muslin. I use mine to wash my face 🙂

I rarely post on skincare threads but, as someone who suffers with sensitivities, I implore you to leave it alone. Those flakes are dead skin - they're going to drop off soon anyway.

Needs more time and DON'T go near a physical exfoliant. All that will do is further damage the barrier.
How do you cleanse? If you use a hot cloth then that exfoliates anyway, then when your skin is calmer, if you want to exfoliate, use an acid toner a couple of times a week. They have all but replaced the gritty creams and are much more gentle. Lactic and malic acid ones are particularly gentle.
But for now, carry on with the thick emollients.

I'm in agreement with the others - I'd suggest a soothing balm cleanser and a hot cloth to remove it, without rubbing hard. I like a cotton flannel and Superdrug's Vitamin E hot cloth cleanser. It's very kind to my sensitive dry skin and cheap!

Ouch - agree with others I probably wouldn't try and exfoliate. Just lots of lovely moisture.

No don't,use CeraVe as it repairs the skin barrier, marvelous stuff.

Look up Vaseline slugging. It's like a miracle when I overstrip my skin. And if you can get to Lush their Dream Cream is fantastic

Yes me too! You need to leave the flakes alone while the skin underneath heals. If you scrape it off you will just prolong the soreness.

Do not use muslin - far too harsh. A soft flannel is your gentlest option, but it’s too soon for that.

gently use a soft flannel and warm water for now.
plus a gentle moisturiser.
once the skin has healed you can look at physical or chemical peels.

Thank you all.

I will leave my skin alone for now after reading this. I am only washing my face in the evening (and only if I've worn make up - I'm trying to go make up free when I can hide at home!) otherwise I just rinse with warm water. Even that can make it tight and itchy though 😞
I've also cut out alcohol, fizzy drinks/squash and hugely cut down my sugar consumption. I guess this detoxing may also be having an affect ? I hope underneath all this crepey, rough and sensitive skin is a layer of new cells and I'll be a goddess at the end! 😃
I had a great time in Iceland but my god, if I'd of known what the cold weather would do...!
Does anyone know how long it takes for the skin barrier to heal?

For future reference, once your skin has healed, you might want to try this;

www.renskincare.com/products/ready-steady-glow-daily-aha-tonic

I have sensitive skin and so don't exfoliate but this, once a day, helps my skin out.

I wash with my skin and me cleanser but have stopped the treatment and cancelled the order because it wasn't really doing much for my redness/rosacea. This is another reason for quitting the sugar etc in the hope that helps.
I've been looking at the skincare threads since my face has fallen off 😃 and I like the sound of the inky oatmeal cleanser so I might try that when it's all healed.
I'm not keen on hot cloths because of the rosacea.

Agree about Ren products. The overnight recovery balm is really good too: https://www.renskincare.com/products/evercalm-tm-overnight-recovery-balm?pos=1&&sid=a2c85057f&ss=r